


Control

by Lanyonn



Series: Leather & Cuffs [1]
Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Bad BDSM Etiquette, Bad Relationship, Blackmail, Cheating, Dom/sub Undertones, Fucked Up, M/M, mentions of BDSM
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-20
Updated: 2016-03-20
Packaged: 2018-05-27 22:03:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6301996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lanyonn/pseuds/Lanyonn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eames is here to blackmail Arthur. Arthur will not give in without a fight – till he discovers that there is no reason to do so.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Control

  

**Control**

 

 

Arthur’s face is impassive as he looks at the burly man in an awful grey and pink suit seated across the table. He glances again at the set of pictures the man, Eames, has laid out on the table in front of him. It was just one frigging night, he thinks, one night of impulsive bad decisions. He had gone to the BDSM club without knowing what to expect, gone with the flow and found it strangely fulfilling. However, his adventures that night had left him so out of his element for days that he had never gone back. The difference between his daytime persona and the man he wanted to be in bed sometimes was too big for his psyche to grasp and accept. Arthur already had enough shit he was dealing with without bringing his sexual agonies and vagaries into the mix.

 

Arthur had imagined that the only repercussions of his night spent participating in an orgy as a sexual slave would be the demons in his own mind and soul. Arthur was a married man. He had been married to Donovan Bailey for four years now. Considering that Donovan was a famous fitness expert and model, his actions would affect not just their relationship but their careers as well. He hadn’t thought about the last part chiefly because he had been absorbed in guilt over his night of infidelity to Donny.

 

And now, there sat a guy in his consultation room, toying with his miniature bronze paperweight of Donatello’s David, and telling him he was here to ‘negotiate’ a suitable price for his pictures from the night at the BDSM Club.

 

“The club assured me that all activities were completely private, protected and the club would be liable to being sued if incriminating pictures got out.” Arthur speaks slowly as he looks at Eames. “I have a written document to that effect.” It isn’t strictly true. Arthur had been too distraught that night to care about keeping that document safe and he has no idea where that piece of paper is now.

 

Eames gives him a mystical smile. “You can sue them if the pictures get out then, Arthur,” he says with a hint of amusement.

 

Arthur tries to place his voice. He doesn’t sound like any of the other subs or the Dom who had been a part of the orgy. Arthur would remember a voice that heavy and British. Hell, Arthur wouldn’t forget if Eames had been a part of his ‘play’ group that night. Arthur had gone to the club with an old fellow he had met up from college, Nash. Nash wasn’t particularly bright and Arthur didn’t like him much. However, Arthur had been hurting badly, hungering for company and the idea of venturing out into something outrageous had seemed immensely alluring.

 

“I am going to sue them for breach of confidentiality _and_ attempted blackmail,” says Arthur, a muscle twitching in his jaw.

 

Eames’ smile grows more engaging. “That’s lovely, darling,” says Eames, and puts David back over the stack of papers on Arthur’s desk. “However, let us concentrate on the matter at hand.” He sits up straighter and swings his chair to face Arthur fully again. “We need to negotiate a price so that these photos aren’t sold anonymously to the gossip magazine, love. And we need to do it before the next edition of the magazine goes to print tomorrow and hit the stands next week.”

 

Arthur’s muscles grow even more rigid, if possible, as Eames leans in towards him.

 

“I’m not caving in to blackmail,” says Arthur grimly. He hasn’t touched even one of the photos Eames has put on the table in front of him. “And I’m not going to pay you one cent. You can leave now, Mr Eames. I have an appointment at ten.”

 

Eames flashes him a dazzling smile and places a card on the picture of Arthur blindfolded and on his knees with his hands cuffed behind him, face turned up and covered in copious amounts of semen.

 

“Just in case you change your mind before tomorrow, darling,” he says and nods at him once before leaving his office.

 

Arthur cancels all non-urgent appointments for the day.

 

At three in the afternoon, he receives a call from Donovan saying that he will be late getting back home from work that night. Arthur tells him that a few of his college friends have flown in for the weekend and he will be spending some time with them. Donovan doesn’t like Arthur staying away with people he doesn’t know. However, he is understanding and says that it is alright.

 

Arthur is free of all obligations after a few more hours. He takes the envelope which holds the pictures Eames had brought in earlier and goes down to his black Rover parked in the basement. He dials the number on Eames card as he sits in the car.

 

“Darling, tell me you have changed your mind,” says Eames without greeting him. After all that he has dug up in his investigation over the past few hours, Arthur shouldn’t be surprised that they have his personal cell number but he is.

 

“We need to talk more.”

 

“Of course, love, ask away.”

 

“Not on phone,” says Arthur and turns on the ignition. “Meet me at my home.”

 

There is a hesitant pause on Eames’ side. “Surely, you won’t want to risk your loving husband knowing about our small transaction, Arthur.”

 

“At my home in an hour, I’m ready to discuss a reasonable price. Bring everything you have on me. You will get the money in return, all cash.”

 

Arthur cuts the call and turns off his phone. He glances at his image in the rear view mirror, notices how tense his face is and wills himself to relax. He takes a deep breath as he stops at a red light and flexes his fingers a few times. Donovan will be gone the entire weekend, he thinks, having the time of his life. His affair with his agent has being going on for two months already. Arthur hasn’t allowed himself to react to it yet. The day he confirmed that Donovan had been cheating on him was the day he had met up Nash and gone to the gay BDSM Club downtown. It had given him the control he needed to not react madly to it. Revenge was a dish best served cold.

 

However, this little setback Eames had brought him was completely unexpected. But Arthur could deal with it. Arthur could deal with anything. He just needed some leash on his collar. He just needed to feel anchored and in control of himself.

 

When Arthur gets back home, he recognises the silver Honda parked down the street. He had gone through the security tapes at work and pinpointed Eames’ car along with the number. He hasn’t had the time to get someone in the force to run the number plate for him and he hopes that once he is done with Eames, he won’t have any need for it.

 

The only flaw in Arthur’s plan had been what would happen if Eames didn’t show up at his place. However, the cheap sedan puts those doubts to rest. Arthur goes inside to find Eames looking at the collection of artwork prints on a wall of the living room that Arthur has painted black and claimed as his own.

 

“So you’re not just a blackmailer,” says Arthur as he unbuttons his coat and hangs it up, “you also break into people’s houses.”

 

Eames plucks the cigar out from between his lips and exhales heavy white smoke. “All these lovely prints of Rosa, Goya and Caravaggio, and your husband doesn’t even suspect that your tastes in bed run towards the bizarre, love?” he asks, perching on the arm of a sofa chair.

 

“I thought you were a man who liked to keep to the subject at hand, Mr Eames,” replies Arthur. “Did you break into Donovan’s stash of Padróns? They are special releases, you know. He’s not going to be pleased about it.” Arthur takes out two glasses from the mini bar in the living room, puts in some ice and glances over the bottles once before picking up the dark and ornate Bib and Tucker. He has a plan, he tells himself, he has a plan and he can execute it well. However, being back home alone with the blackmailer only drives in the fact that Donny is cheating on him so much harder. He is trying hard not to lose control.

 

Eames comes up behind him at the mini bar and leans against the table close by his side. He taps out the ash in the green marble ashtray there and Arthur watches him do it before glancing at his face. He looks exactly the same like he did that morning – brown hair slicked back, large blue eyes, a growth of stubble over his face and thick pink lips always hinting at a roguish grin. “I might be willing to settle for a lower price if you pampered and flattered me, love.”

 

Arthur tries not to show that Eames’ proximity makes his hair stand on end, and hands him one of the glasses of whiskey.

 

“How do I know that there won’t be a repeat performance of this? It has been two months since I was at the club. For all I know, my pictures are already circulating in the underground. You could have made more copies of it than I can ever recover from you.” Arthur is getting more and more affected by Eames’ closeness every second. He made a mistake but he isn’t the one _in the wrong_. However, Eames still holds the power to ruin his entire life even more than Donny already has. There is a power in Eames’ presence that scares Arthur.

 

He gulps down some of the whiskey and watches Eames smoke the cigar from over the rim of his own glass.

 

Eames smiles fondly and straightens up, no longer slouching against the table. He is the same height as Arthur but bigger than his size in muscles. Arthur isn’t intimidated. Donovan is larger than Eames and a head taller. Being a fitness freak, it means that he is nearly always in a good shape. Arthur knows how to hold his own against bigger men. He has learnt.

 

“Why, Arthur, you will have my word that this will be a onetime deal,” Eames replies and tastes his drink.

 

Arthur stares at him for a few long moments, his controls straining, threatening to break. “Who are you working for?” he asks, knocking back more alcohol. “You weren’t there in the group I was with that night. You didn’t take the pictures. Someone else took the pictures. Where did you get them from? How many people are in on this?”

 

Eames places his glass on the table. “Five hundred thousand dollars,” he says and his voice is quieter now. “That is my beginning sum. There are five pictures, a hundred thousand dollars for each picture. It is a reasonable sum for a man in your position, Arthur.”

 

Arthur takes a step closer towards Eames, a snide smile in place. “Oh come on, _Mr_ Eames,” he replies, takes the cigar from his fingers and pulls in a long drag. Eames’ face is impassive as Arthur blows the smoke in his face. “Are we getting down to business so soon? I thought you’d want more pampering and flattering before we spoke numbers.” He puts the cigar between Eames’ lips and smiles wider, his eyes colder as he steps away to refill his glass.

 

 “You’re not from the club,” continues Arthur when Eames is silent and makes no response. “Why would you wait two months to contact me? It makes no sense. Moreover, they won’t give me written assurances if they wanted to blackmail me later. I wasn’t exactly asking for it that night. I gave a shit about nothing that night. But you –” Arthur drinks some more, “you have been tailing me for a long time now. You shouldn’t be hanging around my office building so much in the same damned car if you don’t want to get caught in the cameras. Why would he come and ask me today, I thought, if he has had these pictures all along?”

 

Arthur looks at Eames again who looks back at him keenly and his face the most serious Arthur has seen it yet. “Of course, it is because you’ve been asked to confront me today by Donovan, haven’t you? You’re the little rat he has set on me. You told him that I have an appointment with a divorce lawyer today and he decided to pull his guns first. Ruin my life before I could ruin his. He probably wanted to draw out this sham of a marriage till I come into my inheritance but things got too hot for him now.”

 

Arthur hasn’t thought it was possible to hurt so much over Donovan. Things have been bad between them for over a year now. He kept hoping and trying for something to get better but it only became worse. Arthur hadn’t thought of setting a private eye on him. Arthur hadn’t been thinking about money and divorce and settlement – he had been hurting too much for it. Now he realises how utterly naive he has been. His grandmother’s days are numbered after she has been given a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. Arthur has been too devastated to realise that it also means that he will come into his inheritance after her death. Donovan, on the other hand, has been carefully collecting the dirt on him for who knows how long. He would be able to afford it all if he could prove that Arthur was the one mistreating him and cheating on him. If it wasn’t bad enough that Donovan was cheating on him, Arthur has to live with the fact that he has been planning to fuck him up real good because of his money.

 

Arthur empties out his second glass of whiskey just thinking about it.

 

“Slow down now, would you, love?” Eames picks up the bottle and puts it out of Arthur’s reach when Arthur wants to pour himself a third round.

 

Arthur hisses at him angrily. “Fuck you. Go kiss Donny’s ass because that’s all you’re good at. Know what? I changed my mind. Let the fucking photos go to print for all I care. Let the world have a look at what Donny Bailey fucks – or doesn’t fuck. Do they want an interview to go with it? I’d be willing to dish on how Donny is completely boring in bed, which is why I strayed from the right path and went into orgies every night, cheating on my innocent, unsuspecting husband. I’ll even claim I was jealous of his _popularity_.” Arthur grabs Eames’ glass and gulps down half of it.

 

 _This wasn’t the plan_ , the still-rational part of his mind yells at him. _You’re ruining your life. You’re ruining the plan. You had a fucking plan!_

 

Eames pries his glass away from Arthur’s fingers.

 

“Alcohol is the root of all evil, pet,” says Eames and puts an arm around Arthur. He pulls him away from the bar and settles him on the couch. Arthur rubs his face and looks at Eames who is crouching down in front of him, a hand on his thigh as he rubs it soothingly. Arthur feels an irrational urge to break down in tears. He is so pathetic that even his fucking _blackmailer_ pities him.

 

“Look,” Arthur swallows hard and crosses his arms, tries again, “whatever you have on me, I will pay you to keep your mouth shut. Can you just not give it to Donny? Have you already given the pictures to Donny?”

 

Eames’ hand stills on his thigh. “More than five hundred thousand?” he asks.

 

“More than five hundred thousand,” Arthur’s fingers clench his own upper arms as he tries to focus on the rational part of his brain, “especially if you agree to change sides and work for me, instead. You already know I’m the one who actually has the money here, right? Why count on Donny who actually relies on me to fill his coffers after our scandalous divorce?”

 

Eames’ face is unreadable. He starts stroking Arthur’s thigh again. “Are you absolutely sure I’m working for your husband, pet?” Eames asks, his hand sliding up Arthur’s waist as he raises himself from his crouching position. “Maybe I have designs on you of my own volition. Seeing those pictures of yours, you know, any guy would be swayed to indecency.”

 

Indecency, indeed.

 

Arthur shrinks back against the couch as Eames traps him against it, one hand holding Arthur’s hip and the other braced on the back of the couch over Arthur’s shoulder. The curtains over his expression have lifted to reveal a hungry, lust entrenched look that sends a stab of desire down Arthur’s body, startles him out of his misery.

 

“Is this part of some plan, too?” Arthur bites out as he looks at Eames. “Got the cameras ready?”

 

Eames gives him a mystical smile and caresses his hair. “How about you hand over the control to me, pet? I promise to take good care of you – in every way.” He pulls away from Arthur and picks up the small black bag that had been on the coffee table before. He brings it to Arthur and puts it in his lap. “This has all evidence I have of your play from the night at the club. I haven’t shared it with anyone. It is now yours to do with it as you please.” Eames smiles at Arthur, who sits dumbfounded, his eyes moving back and forth between Eames and the bag. “In return, you can pay me back by submitting to me.”

 

Arthur opens the zipper of the bag tentatively as if he suspects there is a dangerous bomb inside. There is a video camera and an envelope thick with a stack of pictures inside it. He glances back at Eames, who looks strangely confident of himself.

 

“You want to blackmail me into submitting to you?” he asks. “That’s the cardinal sign of a bad Dom. I’ll just be signing up for more blackmail material.”

 

Eames is unperturbed by the accusations. “Call me when you’re ready. I will send you my address. I will expect you at my place within two hours after that, love.” He steps forward and lifts up Arthur’s face by his chin. He brushes his luscious lips against Arthur’s and meets his eyes for a last time before leaving his house.

 

Arthur isn’t quite sure how a monetary trade off got converted to a Dom/sub exchange but despite himself, he wants to believe that Eames isn’t lying to him, that Eames will indeed take good care of him if he hands himself over to Eames. He clutches the bag harder and thinks of Donny. It hurts. It hurts awfully. No matter how Donny has fucked him over, Arthur still loves him. If Donny were to apologise, admit that he made a mistake, then Arthur would forgive him. But he recalls that Eames had shown up in the security footage over and over and Arthur had discovered his number listed in an advert for a PI employment agency. There was a lot of guesswork and circumstantial evidence involved in Arthur’s hypothesis but he is sure that he isn’t imagining it.

 

Arthur sleeps on it.

 

A week passes and there is no sign of Arthur’s incriminating pictures in the magazine Eames had mentioned. Donny is gone for the entire weekend and even when he returns, he is in perpetual bad mood. Arthur tries to check his phone when he is in the shower one morning but it is password protected. On Friday, a popular tabloid publishes a scandalous cover story exposing Donovan Bailey’s extramarital affair with his agent, Mark Jameson.

 

Arthur calls Eames.

 

Eames stays in an apartment not far from Arthur’s office building. He is wearing a pair of loose grey pants and a black beater when he opens the door for Arthur and smells like he is freshly out of a hot shower. His expression softens as he looks at Arthur. Arthur knows he looks like shit. Donny was home when he received the news of his affair being exposed in the tabloid. He had been scared and angry. Arthur had broken down. Donny had tried to convince him that it was all fake and for some wild moments, Arthur had wanted to believe him.

 

But then he had thought of Eames, thought of the bad which had the videos and the pictures and pushed him away, told him that he needed time. He had packed his bag, gone down to his car from where he had called Eames.

 

“Oh, pet,” murmurs Eames and pulls him inside. “I’m sorry.” Arthur breaks down again as Eames puts his arms around him and strokes his hair and back as Arthur sobs hysterically. Every piece of his broken heart is a shard cutting him open afresh. He had known, he had known for a while now that it would have to end one way or the other. But it doesn’t make it easy. Nothing is going to make it easy.

 

Eames holds him till he is too tired to cry anymore. He wipes his face with the towel Eames has handed him and murmurs an apology of his own. “Tell me it wasn’t you who handed over that news to the tabloid,” says Arthur after drinking down the water Eames brings him. “It will probably work in my favour during the divorce,” Arthur gives a hollow laugh. “But tell me it wasn’t you.”

 

A deep line etches itself between Eames’ brows as he frowns. “No, I’m not as stupid as you might believe I am.”

 

Arthur sighs and looks at the towel in his hands. “No, you were Donny’s defence.”

 

“I did not give him any of your pictures, pet, I promise. He has nothing on you. And he won’t get anything from me now, either. I quit the job the very day I came to your house.”

 

Arthur glances at Eames. So he hadn’t been wrong about his theory, after all. Eames had been working for Donny.

 

“You should stop thinking about it now,” says Eames as he looks him in the eye. “It is going to be hard but you can deal with it, Arthur.”

 

“That’s kind of unavoidable,” Arthur says bitterly. “I have to deal with it – I don’t have a choice.”

 

Eames runs his fingers through Arthur’s hair and cups the back of his neck. “Stop thinking about it, Arthur,” he says more firmly and massages the back of Arthur’s neck. “Donny doesn’t deserve to hurt you more than he already has.” There is a commanding undertone to Eames’ words. Arthur shivers as he concentrates on Eames’ fingers on his neck. He lowers his gaze and nods wordlessly, feels the heaviness of his misery slowly seep out of him.

 

“Our deal still stands,” Eames says, and Arthur bows his head more. “If you really think it is only blackmail and would like to back out of it, you can do it now or at any time. You already have everything I was able to gather on you. I did not lie about that, Arthur.”

 

The bag sits in the boot of Arthur’s Rover.

 

“I have been watching you for four months now,” continues Eames, his fingers trailing from Arthur’s neck to his shoulder and then down the front of his torso. “Donny was keen to get whatever he could on you so that the divorce would work in his favour. That day you drove down to the hotel where he had a photo shoot, I guess I should have warned him that you were coming. But really, he was such an ass. I wanted him to be found out. I wanted you to discover him red-handed and be done with him.” When Eames reaches Arthur’s waist, he stops and slips his arm around Arthur’s body and draws him closer. Arthur complies. “You were such an angel, he did not deserve you. But instead of confronting him, you end up going to my brother’s club. What are the odds?”

 

Eames sounds a little amused now. Arthur wants to look up but he keeps his eyes fixed to the floor. He steps close against Eames’ body when he guides him to but he dare not bring up his arms around Eames. He has the chance to walk away but he doesn’t.

 

“Sometimes people like their photographs being taken. Sadly, you had not signed up for that. My brother didn’t suspect anything when I came over that day. I’m a Dom there, you know. And I leave a hefty tip at the end of the day, too. Your Dom believed me when I said you had signed up for a picture. They knew me better than they knew you.”

 

Those wild urges flair up inside Arthur’s body again as he thinks of that night two months ago. Maybe he had subconsciously let on that he wasn’t satisfied with what he and Donny had in bed. Maybe that was what drove Donny closer and closer to Mark. Arthur inhales sharply and puts a clamp on those thoughts. Eames said not to think about it. Arthur is going to let himself do what Eames wants.

 

“I almost regretted informing Donny about your night out at the club. I told him I couldn’t hand him over the pictures unless he could give me a good price. He was in no hurry to break up right then so he waited. And then you were going in to your lawyer. That one Donny discovered by himself – he checks your phone behind your back, you know. Honestly, pet, there are more than enough reasons for you to be rid of him.”

 

Arthur shivers as Eames’ lips trace the side of his neck – up, down, and once more. However, he stands still, head down, letting Eames take what he wants.

 

“The blackmail was a putrid idea but I offered to do it because otherwise, it would mean letting Donny see you like that. Since the moment I saw you under your Dom, I knew I didn’t want anyone else to see you like that ever again. I wanted to have you for myself. So I pushed you and watched. You’re so smart, pet, so lovely. You figured out most of it by yourself in a few hours.” Eames wraps his arms tightly around Arthur’s body and holds him close. His face is buried in Arthur’s neck but Arthur can make out his words clearly.

 

“You are so much in love with your undeserving husband, though, how could I have you? Coercion is not my way. But when I look into your eyes, I know you need something more. And I can give you what you need. I won’t ever let anything harm you, pet. But that will come at a price. If you want it, too, it will be a sweet price.”

 

He must know by now, Arthur thinks desperately as he hears Eames’ words. He must know that Arthur means to give Eames what he wants. Arthur wants to give in and so he stands, mute and servile, letting Eames hold him and press so close against him. He hasn’t let any man other than Donny be as close to him in four years barring that one night at the club. Arthur consciously avoids touching people and being close to them. He has a thing about it. It means a lot to him when he doesn’t flinch away from touches and lets someone hold him close. The night at the club hadn’t been close hugs and wanton touches, and hadn’t seemed so much like cheating.

 

Eames slips a hand under Arthur’s crumpled shirt and strokes the bare skin of his back. His breathing is laboured and Arthur can feel the press of his growing hard on against his groin. It is weird to think that a man knows so much about him and he barely knows his name, only knows that he words as a private eye and was employed by his husband to gather some dirt on him.

 

“I wish I could have met you at a better time and in a better way, Arthur,” Eames says gruffly and places a sloppy kiss under his jaw. Then he pulls back and the warmth is gone, the protective, assertive arms have moved away. “I cannot take advantage of your current state, pet. For a long time now, you’re all that I’ve thought of, and it is a pity that I couldn’t present myself to you better.”

 

Arthur breaks character and finally looks up then. It is wrong but he looks into Eames’ eyes. He is terrified of losing Eames but there is more. Willingness, want, he wants Eames to see that Arthur wants him, too, that he would have wanted him even if Donny hadn’t pushed him towards wanting other men.

 

“Please,” he tells Eames, moves to take hold of his hand. “I do not come to you because I have no choice. I choose to come to you. I know it isn’t the right time to be making decisions like this. But I need you. We had a deal.” Arthur squeezes Eames fingers. “Take what you is rightfully yours.”

 

Eames doesn’t stand a chance against Arthur after that. Right then, Arthur isn’t aware of the full extent of power he has over Eames. But slowly he will learn, and then Eames will be in jeopardy for real.

 

But for now, Eames can still pretend that he is the one holding the reins. He tortures Arthur with prolonged silence and afterwards, his voice is more in control as he asks Arthur to go inside and relax in the bath. Arthur’s gaze flickers down towards Eames’ crotch as he bows down his head. Eames doesn’t miss it and smirks to himself.

 

“Won’t you need me for anything else?” asks Arthur. 

 

“Not for now,” says Eames, knowing that the longer he makes Arthur hurt for it, the more Arthur will crave for it. Right now, the imprint of another man is still fresh on Arthur. Arthur still hasn’t freed himself from Donny. Eames is jealous even though Arthur is in his home right now. He needs Arthur to want him as badly as he wants Arthur. He needs Arthur to forget every man but him. “While you are in my house, Arthur, you’re mine and you should aim to please me. Do not ask me questions when I tell you to do something. If you need to break roles, use the word ‘Break, please’. But while you’re mine, you do as I ask, Arthur, no questions, no talking back.”

 

Arthur bows his head more. “Yes, Mr Eames,” he says and heads off in the direction of the bathroom Eames had pointed out earlier.

 

Eames lights a cigarette as he tries to think away his erection. _Mr Eames_ , he thinks, as he goes out into the balcony, cold air frosting his breath and skin, he could get used to hearing that.

 

 

**_finis_ **

 

 


End file.
